Matt Paul and Radio Pennsylvania
| 10.07.13

Photo by Joscephus Wallace- witf

President and Founder Pat Halpin-Murphy says treatment of the disease has vastly improved over the past two decades. She says:

“The five year survival rate, now, is close to 90 percent. But we still haven’t found the cause of breast cancer, we still haven’t found a cure. So funding research is extraordinarily important.”

Murphy is advocating for legislation that would require radiologists in Pennsylvania to notify patients if they have dense breast tissue.

She says dense tissue can mask a tumor, and the notification would educate women about additional screening options. The bill has already cleared the state Senate and House Health Committee.

First Lady Susan Corbett joined Murphy, this week, to help turn the state Capitol fountain pink for Breast Cancer Awareness Month. Statistics from the coalition show 32 women are diagnosed with the disease every day in Pennsylvania.